You know what they say about the creative process: let your own life influence you. As we all know, many songs throughout history have been inspired by their creators’ experiences or events that have marked them, and when translated into the realms of rock and punk we have the most randomly amazing tunes ever. Naturally, if we think about this and put the name Mötley Crüe into the equation, the results are really outstanding. Sex, drugs, and rock & roll might have been more than a reflection of what it was like to be a rockstar at the time (perhaps even today), but when listening to epic stories, this band has definitely a huge advantage before others. So, children, take a seat, relax, and listen to the story of how Nikki Sixx, bassist and co-founder of Mötley Crüe, woke up in a dumpster after being left for dead.

Fuel injected dreams

Are bursting at the seams

Am I in Persia

Or am I just insane?

It all happened one Valentine’s Day evening in 1986 in the city of London. Our protagonist, a young man at the peak of his musical career, decided to have a break from all his obligations and went to his dealer's house to chill for a while. He felt an urge and decided to get his dose right away. It’s not known exactly how much heroin he consumed but the fact is that he overdosed right there in his dealer’s living room.

One foot in the grave

Such a foolish child

For a date with death

Sight the dotted line

Unfortunately, this guy wasn’t anything like Lance in Pulp Fiction, prepared with a kit for emergencies. No, this guy had no medical knowledge whatsoever, and the only logical thing he thought was trying to beat his customer back to life with a baseball bat. Needless to say, it didn’t work. Sixx stopped breathing and, in a desperate move, the guy thought that taking him to a hospital was way too risky and decided to leave the body of the bassist in a dumpster.

Going way too fast

Gonna burn and crash

Valentine's in London

Found me in the trash

Next morning, confused, with a terrible hangover, and in a lot of pain (you know, for the good beating he received) Nikki Sixx woke up amid a pile of garbage, confused at what had happened. There isn’t much more information about the incident, but what is reflected in the song inspired by it, “Dancing on Glass,” which, as you can see from the extracts I’ve been sharing, is quite straightforward. One thing I love about the song is the fact that he states that he's hit rock bottom and claims he won't be doing it again. But then in the next verses, he changes his mind. Not unlike what happened in real life. At least we can’t say he’s a dishonest man.

Need one more rush

Then I know, I know I'll stop

One extra push

Last trip to the top

This was the first near-death experience the musician endured, since he basically stopped breathing for a while. But this didn’t really make him change his mind. Only a year later he was once again declared dead. Guns & Roses and Mötley Crüe were touring together and the day before Christmas, Sixx decided it was a great idea to shoot some smack at Slash’s hotel room. The legendary guitarist wasn’t there at the moment, but his girlfriend witnessed when Sixx started to OD right in front of her. Scared, she called the hotel staff, who called the paramedics. During the ride to the hospital the rock star stopped breathing and was declared dead, but one of the paramedics was a huge Mötley Crüe fan and refused to give up until he brought him back to life. Not content with basically dying, he escaped the hospital and got another dose. He was found asleep with the syringe still in his arm. From this came their famous song “Kickstart my Heart.”

Silver spoon and needle

Witchy tombstone smile

I'm no puppet

I engrave my veins with style

The lesson, actually I don’t think there’s a good lesson to be learned here. I doubt that this is something common and that if you try stuff like this, it’s unlikely that you'll have the same luck. Fortunately, the fact that this reached international attention from the media might have been the reason the whole band decided to enter rehab. It was then when the band made one their most popular album: Dr. Feelgood. Hey, I guess there's a lesson after all!